Shanmugam on City Harvest Church case: 'The matter is not over yet'

The Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) is considering whether it is possible to take further steps on the City Harvest Church case and will decide by early next week, said Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam on Saturday (Apr 8).

All six church leaders convicted of criminal breach of trust had their sentences reduced by a three-judge panel under the appeal verdict released a day earlier.

Mr Shanmugam, who was at a racial and religious harmony event in Toa Payoh on Saturday, said: "The media is reporting that the matter is over, that this is final. Not quite. The matter is not over yet."

The original sentences, handed down in November 2015 ranged from 21 months to eight years. It was the largest case of misuse of charitable funds in Singapore history.

The AGC appealed as it believed the original sentence was too low, a view which the Government agreed with, said Mr Shanmugam. The six church leaders had appealed against their conviction.

Referring to the judges' reasoning for lowering the sentences, Mr Shanmugam said: "From the Government's point of view, this reasoning, this legal reasoning has serious implications in other cases, including corruption cases and our zero-tolerance approach for the future.